09 May 2021

The official opening of the Kazungula bridge today marks a happy ending to the long and painstaking era of the use of the time consuming pontoon to ferry both passengers and goods between Botswana and Zambia.

All and sundry are blissful the long wait of the project, launched in 2014 has finally come to an end.

President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi and his Zambian counterpart, President Edgar Lungu will host fellow SADC heads of State, Presidents Felix Tshesekedi and Filipe Nyusi of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Mozambique at the commissioning ceremony of the bridge and one stop boarder facility.

The 923 meters long bridge, which lies at the confluence of Zambezi and Chobe rivers, is surely a landmark that is expected to rev-up regional integration and ensure regional bloc access to international markets.

Also the commissioning of the facility bode well with Botswana Vision 2036 which espouses to the ambition to develop the country into a regional transport corridor moving and connecting people, goods and services with the rest of the world.

“We will leverage our geographic location by linking our economy regionally and internationally through private sector participation in the development of our transport infrastructure,” reads in part the national vision.

Fifty-one year old truck driver, Mr Cleopas Chikandiwe is among the many that are pinning their hopes on the opening of the bridge.

He said in an interview with BOPA on Sunday that the delays caused by frequently pontoon breakdowns will be eliminated from the equation paving way for smooth transit of goods and people.

All that he wishes to see happen is for officials manning the points of entry on both sides to expedite clearance of good to ensure transit time is cut down.“I have been waiting to cross since nine o’clock in the morning but because of the limited space of the ferry I am more likely to cross the following day.  

The advent of this state of the art bridge therefore provide will help expedite transit time,” he said.

Another truck driver, Mr Witson Chafunga reiterated Mr Chikandiwe’s sentiments, saying that the opening of the bridge will surely come as relief to truck drivers who have been forced to spend a lot of time queuing at the ferry.

Mr Rushford Mumba, 56, is optimistic the bridge will not only provide easy passage of good and people but will go a long way at decongesting crowds that could act as super spreaders for COVID-19.

“It is my honest belief and expectation that this facility will clamp down on instances where our COVID-19 results expire before we cross forcing us to dig deep into our pockets to re-test,” he said. Ends